Good Enough
by Claire Chase
Summary: Kate’s not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.
1. Chapter 1

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

So, I've been sucked into a sister fic. Yeah, so sue me! It's kind of fun for me to write this. I sincerely enjoy writing this character's personality. Other than that, enjoy! The title is from the Evanescence song; I thought it kind of fit.

**Good Enough**

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Kate Turner sat, curled up in a ball, in the enclosed tunnel at the park. She didn't want to go home yet and never again. This was her sanctuary; not a very good one, but it was more of a home than hers. Slowly, Kate crawled to the end of the tunnel and peered out. It was freezing outside and the playground was empty; on the other side, there was a group of boys at the basketball court, but it didn't look like they were playing. A few were fighting and the rest were watching, some egging them on. Kate recoiled back into the tunnel, her fears taking over; she was afraid of fighting. She rocked back and forth, trying to stay warm. The boys were shouting loudly, but Kate ignored them. In a few weeks, it'd be November and it would only get colder. Then what would she do? If she went home, it would be terrible; if she stayed here, she'd freeze to death. Kate began to fall asleep again…that is, until she was rudely awakened.

"Dude, what the fuck?" a voice asked.

"Who the hell would call the cops?" another seconded.

"I dunno but let's get the fuck out of here," a third instructed.

The cops were coming? Oh no. This was the end of Kate escaping her family after only one week. What would she do? Kate crawled out of the tunnel and began to run through the play equipment attached to the tunnel. She tripped on a landing piece and rolled on it, towards the fireman's pole and fell onto the ground.

"Ow," she mumbled.

"What's that?" a fourth whispered.

"Shut up Jackie!" the third hissed.

A pair of hands pulled her into the enclosed bottom. Kate panicked as her eyes adjusted. Four boys, two white and two black, of various ages looked at her.

"What are you going to do to me?" she asked quietly.

"We're not going to do anything," the third, a white boy, told her.

"Why are the police coming?"

"We can't tell you. You need to promise us that you won't tell the police that you saw any of us here."

"Okay…why?"

"We still can't tell you…"

"But we'll make sure they don't find you," the first, a black boy, finished. "You look like a runaway who doesn't want to be found."

Kate nodded.

"All right. Let's get you back here," the third seated her between himself and another white boy. "You need to stay absolutely quiet."

"Okay."

The five sat in silence for what seemed an eternity. No one came to the park; it was far too cold to for anyone. Eventually, Kate fell asleep again. Someone gently moved her shoulder.

"Hey, wake up," one of the boys told her.

Kate rubbed her eyes. "Huh?"

"We need to get out of here now," another told her. The boys all stood, crouched a little. The oldest pulled her up. Voices began calling.

"Come on," one whispered.

Another poked his head out and looked around, and then began running. A second took off after, and a third. The oldest looked at her.

"All you gotta do is run."

He began to run, Kate's cold little hand in his large gloved one. The two were now outside their hiding place; he ran far faster than Kate could. Her hand slipped from his grip. Kate fell, face first in the cold rocks. The oldest looked back for a moment or two and kept running. Kate crawled back under the play set. The officers' voices were coming closer. They'd make her go back home, the one place she swore she'd never return to. She was only six, but she wasn't stupid; she knew that families weren't supposed to beat you. That was only her foster family; now, she'd return to social services, another place she didn't want to go to. It was so cold and dreary there, almost a place of death, deceit, and defeat. Kate placed her back on the equipment.

"I heard something over there," a voice said.

The rocks began to rustle and make noise as they came closer. Guns drawn, the police officers ducked down and looked in the little nook.

"We're clear." The officer climbed in next to her. "What's your name sweetie?"

"Kate."

"What's a little girl like you doing out here on a day like this?" Kate didn't respond. "Were you here with your brothers?" Nothing. "You need to tell us who they were."

"I don't know," Kate snapped. "I was sleeping here and I don't know what happened."

"We're going to take you with us." The officer grabbed Kate's hand and pulled her into the open. Another officer wrapped her in a blanket and put her in a police car. Kate didn't like the police officer headquarters; it reminded her of social services, especially the little room they'd put her in alone. An officer brought in a woman.

"Katherine, what in the world are you doing here?"

"We found her at the park."

"Katherine, did you runaway?"

"Yeah Miss Mary."

"Officer, she's in social services. Come on; let's go gather your things from that house."

Kate pulled herself up from the chair and followed Miss Mary out of the building. Well, her nightmare was coming true all in one day: she'd be going to that house and social services. Wonderful, just what she needed after today; first, getting caught for running away; two, she'd be going to Hell on Earth.

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Kate sat silently in the empty room. She'd been through family after family for a year now, and nothing happened, other than more families who beat her or other terrible thing. Kate had grown so quiet and shy after all of the families' abusive behavior to her. It was almost like it wasn't her anymore, but some little ghost of Kate. Miss Mary came back with an older woman following.

"Miss Evelyn, this is Katherine." Miss Mary left the room. Kate looked at the ground.

"Hello Katherine. I'm Miss Evelyn. My goodness, isn't that quite the name for someone as small as you?" Evelyn smiled kindly. "How about I call you Katie?" Kate didn't respond. "Now, what's a pretty little girl like you doing in social services? And no one can find you a home?" Evelyn flipped open the folder she had and read it. "Oh, now you just seem to have bad luck, don't you?" Kate nodded her head. "Katie, would you like it if I could find you a family?"

"Yes," Kate's voice sounded very small.

Evelyn's smile was growing larger now that Kate was opening up. "All right, why don't we take a little field trip?"

"To where?"

"To a place that might be your new home." Kate nodded up and down vigorously. "Let's go." Kate followed Evelyn outside to her car. Within ten minutes, they'd reached the new house. It seemed so warm and welcoming to Kate as they walked around. "Now, you'd have to share a room. Would you mind that?"

"No…who lives here?"

"Katie, I'm going to adopt you."

"Really?" Kate liked that idea. Miss Evelyn was so warm and sweet.

Evelyn laughed. "Yes, Katie. I am." Kate's stone face broke into a small smile. "Let's go get your things from the social services building." Kate nearly ran back to the car. Finally, she'd have a good family. How that idea excited her! "Now, tell me, what do you really go by?"

"Kate."

"By the time we get back, my sons will be home."

"Sons?"

"Kate, I've adopted four boys before. They're all older than you. It'll be wonderful! Especially since I've always wanted a little girl."

Kate snatched her things from the bunk she had occupied. Kids whispered as she and Evelyn left, saying that only the really bad kids went home with her. Kate didn't care; she'd finally have the family she'd longed for! For at least an hour, Kate sat in boredom as Evelyn filled out the paper work to send out for her adoption. Soon, they returned to where she would now live. Evelyn opened the door to her home, placed her purse on the end table, and began to hang up her coat. Kate followed her slowly with her bags in tow and stopped near the doorway.

"Boys?" Evelyn called. "Bobby, Jeremiah, Angel, Jack, come down here!"

The sound of feet pounding against the floor, the ceiling above Evelyn and Kate, came like elephants rampaging through Africa. Kate looked at the ceiling as the noise moved to the stairwell. The sound of verbal fighting came down the stairs with the footsteps.

"Why you got to be like that?" one voice asked.

"Shut up Fairy."

"What'd y'all do now?" a third questioned.

"I didn't do anything!" another replied.

The four boys shoved each other down the stairs as Evelyn said, "No one's in trouble." Each one fell into a dysfunctional line in front of Evelyn. "Boys, this is Kate. She's your new sister."

"Foster kid?" the second one inquired. Kate looked shyly at the ground.

"We're adopting her by the end of the week. Kate, this is Bobby," she gestured to the one who asked the last question. "…Jeremiah…" the one who thought they were in trouble. "…Angel…" the one who claimed he was innocent. "…and that's Jack." He was the youngest.

"Ma, where's she gonna sleep?" Angel spoke up.

"She'll share a room with Jack." Jack looked a little panicked. "Oh, no, you won't mind Jack. It's just for now. Both of you are small. When you two get older, then we'll think about getting you separate rooms. Now, show your sister to her new room."

Bobby stepped forward and took Kate's bag and went up the stairs, with Angel following. Jeremiah stepped forward.

"It's nice to have you here, Kate." He smiled and started up the stairs.

Jack nodded to her to follow Jeremiah. Quietly, she started up with Jack behind her. Jack's room was a fair size to fit both of them. Bobby leaned against a wall, Jeremiah sat on the bed with Jack, and Angel sat on the floor. Kate stood quietly and shyly barely in the doorway.

"How old are you?" Jeremiah asked.

"Seven," Kate said quietly.

"See Jackie? She's close to your age," Bobby mocked. Jack frowned; he didn't like being made fun of.

"How long have you been in social services?" Angel questioned.

"Since before I can remember," Kate whispered.

"Damn," Bobby commented. "She's really gonna fit in here."

"Why couldn't you land a family?" Jeremiah spoke up.

Kate looked shyly at the ground, not answering.

"Ah, it's all right. Jerry shouldn't be asking anyway," Angel hit him over the head.

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The wind whistled by the window. Kate hid under her blanket, quivering. The first night was always the longest and scariest, but that wasn't comforting her. Kate slowly got out of her bed and tip toed to the other bed.

"Jack?" she whispered.

Jack shot up. "What? Oh, yeah. What's up?" Jack's voice was tired.

"Can I sleep with you?"

"Huh?"

"I'm scared."

"Of what?"

Her voice grew smaller. "The wind."

"Get up here." Kate crawled into Jack's bed. "First night's always the worst, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"I remember my first night here. It was pretty scary to hear that wind."

"What did you do?"

"Got Ma. She came and spent the night in here. Ma promised she'd get that window fixed. Sleep well Kate."

"Good night Jack."

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Please review. Flames are sent to an undecided location for the time being. Hope you enjoyed it!


	2. Chapter 2

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

All right, if any of you are interested, I need exactly one Beta to help me make a major decision for this story. What I'll need to know is your age and either how many times you have seen Four Brothers or how much you love it because I need someone who knows it very well or loves it very much to help me with this decision, since it ultimately decides everything from there out. Anyways, enjoy! PS - I'm in a writing kind of mood at the moment.

**Good Enough**

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"Jeremiah! Angel! Jack! Time to get up! You can't be late for school!" Evelyn shouted from the door of her room.

Jack and Kate awoke with a start. Light poured through the window, filling the room with light.

"What's going on?" Kate whispered.

"We gotta go to school," Jack crawled to the end of the bed and got out, heading for his dresser and pulling out clothes. "I'm gonna go get ready." Jack opened the door and went to the bathroom. Kate stumbled out of the room and down the stairs, her blonde hair falling messily in her green eyes. Bobby was sitting at the table, sipping some orange juice. Evelyn stood in front of the stove, making some scrambled eggs.

"Good morning Kate!" Evelyn smiled. "Go ahead and take a seat. I'll have breakfast ready in a moment."

Kate sat down next to Bobby at the table, staring at its top.

"Morning Midget," Bobby greeted her. "Sleep well?" Kate nodded tiredly. "Jackie's snoring keep you up all night?"

"Jack doesn't snore," she said quietly.

"What about that wind through the windowsill? Freaked Jack out his first night."

Kate nodded.

"Oh shoot. I meant to get that fixed. I'll call a contractor today and see if we can fix that," Evelyn told her as she sat a plate of bacon on the table.

"Am I going to school today?" Kate asked.

"Today, you're going to stay home with me and Bobby. We're going to go get you some new clothes, get that window fixed, and a few other things."

"Oh," Kate breathed out.

Evelyn sat a bowl of scrambled eggs on the table and some stacked, empty bowls, cereal, and milk. She went to the bottom of the stairs. "Jeremiah! Angel! Jack! Breakfast's on the table!"

The elephant herd tramping through the jungle sound was heard again as the three boys tromped down the stairs. They took a seat at the table and began to load their plates with eggs and bacon and toast and their bowls with cereal. Kate stared at the food awkwardly as the boys ate rapidly. Evelyn came in and sat at a chair on the end.

"Oh, Kate, just go ahead and grab whatever you want."

"Yeah Midge. That's what we do," Bobby said through a bite of toast.

Evelyn smiled. "Here, do you like eggs or bacon or toast or cereal?" Kate nodded. "Okay, let's get you some of this." Evelyn put a small amount of eggs on her plate, along with some bacon, a piece of toast, and a small bowl of Lucky Charms. Kate began to eat slowly, picking a little at it.

"What's wrong with her?" Angel asked. Jeremiah whacked him on the head.

"Go ahead, eat as much as you want, Kate," Evelyn told her. Kate began to eat a little bit more, and then a bit more. She could get used to this; she looked at the boys. The ones who had to go to school were already done. "Okay, you boys have fun at school. Your lunches are by the door."

Jeremiah, Angel, and Jack all stood up, hugged Evelyn and told her goodbye. Evelyn, Bobby, and Kate sat in silence, eating.

"Well, I'm going to go ahead and call a contractor and get that window fixed. Honestly, you'd think I'd remember!" Evelyn laughed and headed to the kitchen.

Bobby took a bite of toast. "So, what happened to you before you came here?" Kate sat quietly. "Geez, touchy topic."

"Why do you call me Midget?" Kate whispered.

"Everyone in this family get nicknames. You're short, so Midget." Kate wrinkled her nose a little. Bobby laughed. "Hey, Jack's name is Fairy. You got lucky." Bobby stood up and ruffled her hair a little. "Think we can get used to you kid."

"Where are you going?"

"Hockey rink." Kate's eyes wrinkled in confusion. "You're kidding me. You've never heard of hockey?"

"No."

"Now that's just sad. Ma, I'm gonna take Kate with me."

"Oh, not now Bobby. I need to run some errands with her. Here, I'll drop her off with the boys after school."

"Be sure to bring along Jackie's old skates. See ya later Midget."

Bobby grabbed a jacket, skates, and a stick and left the house. Kate continued to eat her breakfast.

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"Okay, you tell Bobby that you guys need to be home before dinner. Have fun!" Evelyn called as she pulled away.

Jeremiah and Angel took off towards the rink and pulled their skates on and jumped onto the rink.

"Hey Bobby!" Angel shouted.

"Finally, a good team! Got Jack and Kate?"

"Yeah man."

Kate followed Jack and stared blankly at his old skates that Bobby had requested. The others came over; Bobby kneeled in front of her.

"You ever skated before Midge?" Kate shook her head. "Damn, we got a lot to teach you." Bobby began to tie the skates. Kate watched everyone on the rink, fighting over the little puck.

"Is that how you play hockey?" she whispered.

"Yeah, but we'll get them to take it easy on you."

Kate's eyes grew big. "I don't want to play."

"What?" Bobby looked up, seeing her green eyes wide and glassy.

"I don't wanna play."

"Come on, Kate, its fun!" Angel put his hand on her shoulder.

"No."

Jeremiah sat next to her. "Why don't you want to play?"

Kate's voice grew to its smallest. "I don't like fighting."

"Midget, it's not fighting…well, it is, but it's for fun."

"Fighting isn't fun."

"Here, how about one of us teaches you to skate while we all take a break?" Jeremiah asked. Kate nodded.

"All right Ladies, take a break!" Bobby shouted.

"What the fuck?" someone asked.

"Gotta teach a newbie to skate." The guys filed off the ice, some complaining. Bobby and Angel went on the ice, standing near the entrance. Jeremiah and Jack stood behind her, slowly easing her on the ice. "Careful Midget; you gotta go slowly. Then you can join the rest of us." Kate took a few sliding steps, towards Angel and Bobby, and fell face first. Everyone came down to her level. "You all right kid?"

"Ow," Kate said as she sat on her knees.

The boys laughed. "Took a hard fall there Kate. Wanna try again?" Angel asked.

Kate pushed herself up to stand. "Yeah." Before the boys could stand up, Kate began to take a few more steps, progressing from sliding to gliding.

"You're getting it!" Jeremiah shouted as she began to make little circles.

"Can I have one of those sticks?"

"A hockey stick?" Bobby asked. He grabbed one. "Here, we'll give you a little scrimmage. Me and you against the rest of them."

"Can we win?"

Bobby laughed. "Hell yeah, Midge! Let's show 'em what you can do." Kate smiled at him. "All you gotta do is hit the puck, that black thing, into the net."

"Here, you guys start," Jeremiah let the puck slide at them. Kate pulled back her stick a little and whacked it as hard as she could. It went sliding across the ice, flying up a little, at a high speed. Bobby, Jeremiah, Angel, and Jack's eyes grew large as it sailed and whacked the back of the net.

"Shit," Angel breathed out.

"Screw the scrimmage; she's on our team!" one of the guys off of the ice shouted.

"Hell no; Mercers stay together!" Bobby told him. "You ready Kate?"

"Bring it on."

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"So, how was everything at the rink today?" Evelyn sat a plate of grilled cheese and large bowl of chicken noodle soup on the table.

"Dude, Kate kicked ass!" Angel said.

"Angel, watch your language."

"I've never seen anyone hit like that, especially at seven," Bobby said, taking a sip of water.

"She's amazing!" Jeremiah agreed, grabbing a sandwich.

"I'm glad to hear that. Did you have fun Katie?"

"Uh huh," Kate said, taking a spoonful of soup.

"Now, on Monday, Katie, you're going to go to school with Jack and Angel." Kate looked up at her. "Jeremiah's in high school, so it'll just be the three of you. Now, Angel, I want you and Jack to help Kate as much as possible with everything. Understood?"

"Yeah Ma."

"What about Bobby?" Kate asked.

"Midge, I graduated from high school when you were three."

"Oh…"

"Now, you guys don't stay up too late tonight."

"Nah, we won't Ma."

"And don't show Jack or Kate any scary movies. Understood?"

"Ah, Ma, do we have to watch Disney with them?" Jeremiah groaned.

"It doesn't have to be Disney, Jeremiah. Just watch something that won't give them nightmares. Bobby, you keep an eye on all of them." Evelyn headed for the front door. Kate rushed after her.

"Where are you going?"

Evelyn kneeled down. "I'm going to go fill out paper work with the lawyer to make you part of our family. Good night Katie."

Kate hugged Evelyn. "Good night Miss Evelyn."

"Oh, now what kind of greeting is that for your mother?" Evelyn ruffled her hair a little. "Sleep tight Katie."

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So, we've got some initial bonding going on. Please, please, pretty please review! The pretty blue button beckons your mouse to click on it. Flames are sent to undecided location. Hope you enjoyed it.


	3. Chapter 3

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

Hola. Here's Chapter 3. There's been a bit of a time lapse; sorry, those might happen a lot until she's a teen. Anyways, enjoy.

**Good Enough**

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A couple of weeks had passed since Kate had moved in with the Mercers. She was getting more comfortable with the boys, but still a little withdrawn. The adoption papers hadn't been entirely worked out yet, but Kate didn't really mind all too much. Things were going very well, making Kate rather happy. Bobby, Jeremiah, and Angel sat on the couch and in chairs, flipping through T.V. stations; Jack and Kate sat next to the fireplace, reading; Evelyn was in the chair next to the record player, knitting.

"Ma, when we going Christmas shopping?" Angel asked, looking away from the T.V.

Kate looked up from her library book. "What's Christmas?" The boys all looked at her.

"What seven-year-old doesn't know what Christmas is?" Bobby questioned.

"Bobby," Evelyn said sternly. "Katie, have you ever gone to church?"

"Once or twice." Kate placed her bookmark in.

"Christmas is the night when Jesus was born."

"And everyone gets presents." Jeremiah added.

"Oh," Kate whispered, opening her book again.

"You're not excited?" Angel inquired.

"I don't know…I've never had a Christmas before."

"Ma, can we go right now?" Jack piped up.

"Yeah!" Angel agreed. "There's tons of stuff I need to get!"

"Oh, I suppose we could go." Evelyn smiled, getting up from her chair.

The boys flipped the T.V. off; Jack and Kate placed their books on the coffee table. Everyone put on their jackets and coats on and got in the car and headed for the mall. Evelyn chose a parking spot and shut off the car.

"All right, everyone have money?" The boys nodded. "Okay, now, we're going to meet in the food court at 2. Have fun." They all went into the mall. Jack went with Bobby while Angel and Jeremiah bolted for stores together. Kate looked up at Evelyn. "Well, how about we find you a dress now?"

"Huh?"

"We go to church on Christmas Eve and we all get dressed up."

"Even Bobby?"

"Oh yes, the boys all wear dress pants, nice shirts and ties." Kate wrinkled her nose. Evelyn laughed. "And the two of us wear dresses." Evelyn and Kate went into a store and began to look at dresses. Kate didn't enjoy this very much; she never liked dresses. Worse yet – she still had to try them on. Most of the dresses didn't fit or swallowed her whole. Finally, Kate and Evelyn found one they both loved; it was white and long with a bit of a poof to it. The girls bought it and were greeted by the boys outside the store.

"All right, partner switch," Bobby announced.

Jack went with Evelyn while Bobby took Kate with him.

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to get Jack's present."

"What is it?"

They went into a music store. "Hey, still got that guitar?"

"Here you are," the cashier handed it to Bobby. "Jack's been eyeing that for a while now."

"What do you think Midget? Jack gonna like it?"

Kate looked at the guitar, plucking a few strings on it. "Yes."

Bobby laughed and handed an envelope over to the cashier, who pulled money out of it, counted it, and handed Bobby a receipt. The cashier put it in a box and Bobby and Kate left.

"So, Kate, you know what you're going to get for everyone?"

"I don't know…"

"Well, the guitar's from all of us. Now, I happen to know things that Jerry, Angel, and Ma would love."

Kate's face lit up. "What?"

Bobby took her to a store, where they selected a tape for Angel. Then, they picked out a movie for Jeremiah.

"What about Ma?" Kate asked.

"We're meeting up with the rest of the guys for that."

"But what are we doing?" It was too late; they were already there. Kate frowned. "Pictures?"

"Ma always puts a picture of each and all of us on the wall, so we take them for her for Christmas." Jack finished having his picture taken. Bobby put Kate up on the stool. "Now, Midge, you gotta smile for us." The photographer began to wave a little stuffed animal around by the camera. This didn't amuse Kate.

Jeremiah looked at Bobby. "Dude, what can we do?" Bobby hit Jeremiah over the head. "What the hell was that for?!" Kate began to laugh.

The photographer snapped the camera quickly. "Perfect! Okay, last one and then the whole group."

Bobby helped Kate off of the stool and got on. Kate watched with her other brothers as Bobby smirked a little. The photographer pulled out another stool and had Kate and Jack sit on them, with Bobby, Jeremiah, and Angel behind them. After words, they looked at the pictures. The boys all smirked, which was to be expected; Kate's turned out sweet, but she still didn't like them; the whole group looked like a rather honorary, but somewhat good group of kids.

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Kate was starting to enjoy Christmas. As Evelyn opened the door to the house, the boys were excited for what they might get; Kate liked their excitement, like little children. She really didn't expect much, so she did as she was told (to go and put on her pajamas) and came back down, sitting in her usual spot next to Jack in front of the fireplace. Jeremiah passed out the presents. Bobby went first, loving everything, including the new hockey skates from Kate. Jeremiah was elated over the movie. Angel couldn't wait to play his new tape. Then, Jack opened his gifts. His face lit up as he opened the box and found the guitar; Jack had wanted a guitar for so long.

"All right, Katie," Evelyn told her, beaming over the pictures.

Kate stared at her presents; it felt so awkward to have them in front of her. Slowly, she unwrapped the first one from Bobby; her very first teddy bear. Kate beamed at it, excited. The second, from Jeremiah, was a movie, "The Music Man", that he thought she'd like. Angel's gift was a favorite book of Kate's. When she opened Jack's, she looked at it rather oddly; it was a hockey jersey that read "K. Mercer" on the back, with a large 05 on it.

"Katie," Evelyn looked her straight in the eyes. "The adoption papers came through."

"Hear that Midge?" Bobby asked, kneeling down. "You're a Mercer now." Kate looked at the shirt again. "And that's for when we go for hockey games, like tomorrow."

"Oh, Bobby Mercer, hockey on Christmas Day?" Bobby gave Evelyn a look that said 'Please Ma?' "I suppose. Don't spend all day there. I don't want Jack and Kate getting colds."

"Awesome! First full Mercer family game tomorrow!" Angel said excitedly.

"We're gonna be undefeatable!" Jeremiah agreed. Kate remained quiet, looking at the movie, teddy bear, book, and shirt. The boys all looked at her. "Look, we know it's not that much…"

"No, it's not that…they're wonderful…" Kate looked at everything. "It's just…I've never had my own book or movie…or teddy."

"You're kidding!" Bobby exclaimed. Kate shook her head. He stood up and hugged her. "I'm glad you like it Midge."

"Yeah," Jack agreed, leaning over and hugging her too. The boys all finished the routine of hugging her.

"All right, now it's time for one last tradition tonight," Evelyn said, standing up and going to the kitchen. Jack crawled onto Jeremiah's lap as Angel sat on the couch and Bobby picked Kate up and took a seat on the end of the couch.

"What's going on?" Kate whispered.

"More holiday tradition," Bobby told her.

Evelyn came in and handed out mugs of hot chocolate to everyone and put a movie in the VCR, taking a seat in a chair next to the couch. "Kate, we watch A Charlie Brown Christmas Special every Christmas Eve before heading off to sleep…"

"With hot chocolate!" Angel added.

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Hope you enjoyed it. Please press the pretty little blue button to review. Flames still to unknown location.


	4. Chapter 4

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

Here's Chapter 4. Happy Thanksgiving! I'll get a chapter up for my other Four Brothers fic up ASAP for another little holiday gift. Enjoy!

**Good Enough**

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Kate sat curled up on her bed in hers and Jack's room, reading her book. Jack was across the room, on his bed, playing his guitar. They were enjoying their new gifts very much. Angel's tape was blasting from his room. Bobby had gone out to play hockey and Jeremiah was watching his movie downstairs. Evelyn was working. It was rather peaceful for once. Christmas had only been a week ago and they'd already used their gifts numerous times. Who knew how many times Kate had read that book already? Of course, Bobby had insisted on hockey as many times as possible, all wearing their Mercer team shirts. However, they wondered about Kate; she still barely spoke. They suspected it might have been something from her past, but they didn't want to pursue anything yet…until they had evidence. Jack sat his guitar down next to his bed after some of his many hours spent playing; he had a bit of an idea as to what was going on.

"That sounded good," Kate said softly.

Jack nodded. "Do you like school?"

"Yeah…"

"You know, if you want some new shirts or something, just talk to Ma."

"I like my clothes," Kate replied, quietly and defensively.

"Long sleeves are going to get warm in the spring."

"I'll be fine."

Evelyn came into the room. "How are my youngest kids today?" She hugged Jack and Kate. "We'll be heading out to that movie in ten minutes. Go ahead and change your clothes and be ready, okay?"

"Yes Ma," they replied.

Evelyn headed to Angel's room, closing the door behind her. Jack and Kate got off their beds, pulled clothes out of the dresser, tossed them on their beds, and turned their backs to the other to change, as they always did. As Jack began to pull a shirt over his head, he turned around slightly; Kate was doing the same. Jack's eyes were drawn to a large scar on her back, along with other healing cuts and fading bruises. Just as Kate began to turn around, Jack yanked the shirt on and turned around to face her. Kate headed down the stairs; Jack went towards Angel's room and knocked.

"Yeah? Come in." Jack slid through a crack in the door and shut it. "Hey Jackie. What's up?"

"I think I know why Kate's quiet," Jack mumbled.

Angel picked him up and sat him on the bed. "Okay, what's your theory, fairy?"

"She's got cuts and bruises…" his voice was very little.

"What?"

"…on her back."

"How'd you find that out?"

"Ma told us to change and we got our clothes and turned our backs and then I looked when she was putting her shirt on…"

"Are you sure?" Jack nodded. Angel stepped outside the door. "Bobby! Jerry!"

"Angel, we're leaving soon!" Evelyn shouted up the stairs.

"Yeah, I know Ma, I just got a question for 'em."

Bobby came up the stairs and Jeremiah came out of his room.

"What Ang?" Jeremiah asked.

"Movie starts in 15 minutes stupid!" Bobby added.

"Jack knows what's wrong with Kate."

Bobby and Jeremiah became attentive. "Tell us Jackie," Jeremiah instructed.

"She was abused," Angel jumped on the topic. "Jack says she's got cuts and bruises on her back."

Bobby kneeled down to Jack's eye level. "You're sure about this?" Jack nodded. "How bad were they?"

"She had a big one on her back."

Bobby cursed. "Right now, we're going to the movie. Tomorrow, we're going to talk with Kate about this when Ma's gone."

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It was nearly noon. Evelyn was at work; Bobby and Angel were contemplating what to do with Jack sitting quietly; Jeremiah and Kate were watching her new movie; Kate sipped hot chocolate slowly while Jeremiah's mug sat on the table in front of them. This wasn't going to be an easy task; how were they supposed to talk to a little seven year old about being abused? It took Bobby and Angel a long time to figure it out.

"So, we got the final plan?" Angel questioned.

"Jack, go get Jerry."

Jack nodded and snuck downstairs; the movie was almost over.

"Got a plan?" Jeremiah whispered. Jack nodded. "Hey, Kate, how about we go for a game of hockey after this?"

"Okay," she whispered.

Jeremiah picked her up. "Let's go get those jerseys on."

Kate leaped up the stairs, with her brothers trailing. She shut the door partly behind her and grabbed her shirt. The boys stood at the doorway, peeking in through the crack.

"Shit," Bobby whispered as her back became exposed to them. "That's hard core."

Angel hit him on the head to shut him up. Kate yanked her shirt on; the boys backed off of the door. Bobby knocked on it. "Midge?"

"Yeah Bobby?"

The boys all came in; Jack and Angel sat on Jack's bed; Jeremiah leaned against the doorframe; Bobby sat Kate on her bed and kneeled in front of her.

"We need you to tell us what happened to you before you came here," Bobby told her. Kate looked at him curiously. "Mid – Kat – Katie…Jack saw the cuts and bruises on your back. You need to tell us." Kate's eyes seemed to swim with emotion; it was slightly frightening. Angel stood up and kneeled next to Bobby. Jeremiah and Jack watched anxiously. "Katie, if someone told you it was a secret, it's not. You need to answer me." Kate looked at the ground, swinging her feet back and forth a little. "Was it your last family? The one before that? How many families?"

"Stopped counting after 10," Kate whispered.

Jack's eyes opened wide with terror; Jeremiah rubbed his back a little. Bobby placed his hand on Kate's shoulder. "What did they do to you?"

Her voice was very small. "Kick, hit…one had a…a…" She motioned a whip.

"How young were you when this started?"

"Before I can remember…"

"Is that why you wear long shirts?" Kate nodded, sniffling a little. "Katie, don't cry…come here." Bobby picked her up, sat on her bed, and had her sit in his lap. "Katie, are you afraid?"

"Yes," she whispered into his shoulder.

Angel sat next to Bobby on her bed. "Katie, you don't need to be afraid anymore."

"Yeah," Jeremiah kneeled down in front of Kate and Bobby.

"Katie, we're not going to do anything like that to you. We were all foster kids too. We know what it's like."

Jack got off of his bed and stood in front of Kate. "It's going to be okay."

"Ma's a good person and so are we…" Jeremiah shot Bobby a look. "…well, kinda…but we're not going to hurt you. Understand Midge?" Kate nodded. She threw her arms around Bobby's neck, hugging him tightly.

At first, Bobby wasn't quite sure what to do. Before Kate, they didn't hug much in their family. After an awkward moment, Bobby hugged her back. When she let go, Jeremiah picked her up and hugged her. Next was Angel; he stood her upright on the floor. Jack and Kate hugged tightly.

"So, who's up for hockey?" Bobby asked.

"I am!" Kate cheered.

"Good. Come on, Ladies, let's get those jerseys on and get to that damn rink!"

Kate smiled happily as the guys went for their jerseys and Bobby took her to grab her skates and stick.

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It was early January and time for four of the five Mercer kids to head back to school. None were all too excited about it, but they still showed up. Angel headed off for his friends and locker. Jack and Kate went to their first classes of the day. Kate sat in her desk, and, smiling, placed a copy of the picture with all of her brothers and her in it. She proudly wore her Mercer jersey, a symbol of her new family. As she shut the lid, a boy came up to her.

"You're Kate Mercer?" he asked her.

"Uh huh."

"Wait – did you say Mercer?" another boy jumped in.

"What about it?" Kate inquired.

"The Mercers are bad."

"They get in lots of fights."

"They hurt my older brother!" another came in. "He's a _year_ older than me!"

"They tried to put my older brother in jail!"

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So, we've set the stage for Chapter 5! Please review; flames to undisclosed location.


	5. Chapter 5

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

Happy 1 Year Anniversary Celebration Part 2! So, here's another piece of promised work for my year anniversary of being on the site. Hope you enjoy! I'll get more of it to you within a week's time, including a new additional story for Good Enough!

**Good Enough**

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What was Kate hearing? _They get in lots of fights! They hurt my older brother! They tried to put my older brother in jail!_ Bobby told her that they were good people. He told her that she didn't need to be afraid anymore. Jack told her it would be okay. She'd trusted them, and now she was being told that they were horrible, awful people. The bell rang and the teacher came in.

"All right, children, get in your seats."

Kate sulked in her seat. She'd been so excited about her new family and brothers, and now…she wasn't. The teacher began to ramble on about grammar, but all she could think of was how betrayed she felt. Kate hadn't felt this bad since she was with her last family…and the one before that…and before them…and even before them. Her heart was breaking at the seams; she'd allowed them into her life, allowed her heart to open to them, and she'd trusted them.

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Kate was very ready for lunch after a long morning spent being sad, but it meant she had to try and avoid her brothers. She needed a challenge anyway; she stared at the ground, hoping not to make eye contact with anyone. Somebody bumped into her and she fell back on the ground. Kate picked herself up as the person kneeled down.

"You're the little Mercer, right?" the older boy asked. Kate nodded slightly, afraid. "You better be nice to my little brother."

"Why?" she whispered.

"'Cause something bad will happen to you if you don't." Kate's eyes were filled with terror. He ruffled her hair a little. "See you around, Mercer."

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Kate quietly shut the door behind her. She'd managed to avoid Jack and Angel for most of the day, and then "forgot" to go to the hockey rink. The house was empty; she should have just enough time to think of somewhere to run away to. She was afraid, not just of the older boy from lunch, but also her new brothers; terrified was probably more the word she needed. Kate bounded up the stairs and into their room. Quickly, she pulled on a sweater and went down to the kitchen, for the back door. The front door slammed shut.

"Kate?" a voice called from the front door. "Where are you Midget?" It was Bobby. Fear struck Kate; she needed to get out. Slowly, she stepped towards the door. "Kate?!" He was coming towards the kitchen. As her hand reached for the door, Bobby came in the kitchen. "What are you doing in here, Midge?" He kneeled down, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Get away from me!" Kate shouted, trying to pull away from his grip.

"Kate, what are you talking about?"

"You lied to me!" she tried harder.

"Kate, I never lied to you. What the hell are you talking about?" She yanked herself away harder, but Bobby's tightened his hands on her shoulder. "Katherine, you tell me right now what the fuck you heard."

Kate stopped and looked into Bobby's eyes. He'd used her full first name. No one had used that since she was in social services or five years old. "Some kids were saying that you and Jeremiah and Angel and Jack were bad, and that you get in lots of fights, and you hurt people, and…"

"Who told you this?"

"Kids in my class and…you told me you were good."

"Somebody threaten you?"

"What?"

"You paused. Someone threatened you. Who?"

"An older boy."

"What'd he look like?"

"Tall…with dark hair…and blue eyes…"

"Shit. Katie, what those kids told you was true. Your brothers and I do get into fights, but I can explain to you why." Kate looked at him seriously. "When people are mean or do something to any one of us, we fight them to show them that you can't mess with any of the Mercers. Kate, when people threaten you like that boy did today, we're gonna fight him so that he knows he can't push you around. Got it Midge?"

"Yes Bobby."

"Good. Now go get your jersey on. We got a game to play and someone to show who you are."

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As Kate pulled on her skates, Angel, Jeremiah, and Jack skated up. Bobby pointed at a skater.

"Is that the guy who threatened you?"

Kate nodded.

"Wait – what happened?" Jeremiah asked.

"Number 13 threatened Kate here."

"Let's get him," Angel hit his stick on the ice hard.

"No," Bobby told him. Angel gave him a funny look. "We're gonna play hockey right now and Kate's gonna show him what she's made of."

"Can't we just beat him up right now?" Angel whined.

"Just save that anger for when we go after him. Got it Ang?"

"Yeah Bobby."

"Show that bastard what you got Kate."

Bobby and Kate skated on the ice. The boys on the other team looked at them and laughed.

"What have we got here?" one questioned.

"New midget addition to the team?" another laughed.

Kate pouted angrily; oh, she'd make Bobby proud all right. A boy skated up to her and kneeled to her eye level.

"Sweetheart, why don't you wait over there while the big boys play?" he instructed in a condescending tone.

Glancing at his shin, Kate lifted her stick and took a hard hit at the boy. He doubled over in pain as his teammates' eyes grew big.

"I wanna play," she said firmly.

"You heard her Ladies. She wants to play some hockey!" Bobby shouted.

The face off began; the other team got the puck. Number 13 speeded towards their goal. Kate growled a little and took off at top speed for him; she'd seen Bobby use this trick once, so she thought she'd give it a shot. Placing her stick in front of his skate, Kate lightly taped his skate. He fell, hard and rough, as Kate smacked the puck towards Angel.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Bobby cried.

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"I think a game like that deserves some ice cream," Jeremiah said as he placed his stick in Bobby's car.

"Really?" Kate asked excitedly, putting her skates next to the pile of them.

"Yeah, we're gonna get some ice cream Kate," Bobby slammed the trunk shut.

"And then we gonna fight?" Angel asked, heading for the car door.

"Yeah Ang," Bobby got in the driver's seat.

Kate loved ice cream. They all had eclectic tastes in the frozen treat. Bobby had mint chocolate chip; Jeremiah had plain vanilla; Angel had chocolate; Jack had chocolate fudge; and Kate had chocolate chip cookie dough. One thing that she mostly appreciated about it at the moment is that it seemed to numb everything the faster she ate it. Numbness made it feel that what was going to happen next would be okay. Bobby had them load into the car and began to drive to where he knew they could find Kate's bully. Sure enough, Bobby was right. Kate sat hesitantly in the car as the boys got out.

"It's gonna be okay, Katie," Bobby told her as he helped her out of the car.

He kept his arm around Kate as they came up, then handed the position over to Jeremiah and Jack.

"I hear you been threatening my little sister," Bobby spoke loudly across the court.

The boy turned around. "Well, she's a Mercer, ain't she?" his voice seeped with a condescending tone.

Bobby began to physically fit with the boy. Kate wanted to disappear. Other boys began to approach the remaining four. Angel and Jeremiah began to defend their younger siblings as Kate clung to Jack, desperately wishing she could hide from this.

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Hope you enjoyed! Please review!


	6. Chapter 6

Kate's not your ordinary girl in anyway. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

So, this took me a while to think of how to exactly word this, but I finally got it. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: Do not own Four Brothers. Only Kate. Sorry I keep forgetting this.**

**Good Enough**

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Jack stood next to Kate, keeping his arm around her. Bobby continued to fight with her tormentor, as Angel and Jeremiah fought two others. Another one laughed at the little seven and eight year old. Kate began to cry, burying her head in Jack's shoulder.

"Katie, stay right here," Jack whispered. He let go of Kate and stepped towards the last one, with the intent to fight him. Kate wrapped her arms around herself, her sobs subsiding for a moment as she watched. Jack kicked the guy and tried to punch him; the teen hit Jack repeatedly, until he fell to the ground. The boy smirked and stepped towards Kate; her eyes became big as he began to hit her again and again.

"Get the fuck away from my sister!" Bobby shouted, running over. Kate fell back as Bobby got a hit square on the guy's jaw. Sirens began to go off. The boys all began to panic as police descended upon them. Bobby picked Kate up in his arms as Jeremiah grabbed Jack; the five banded together as police began to load them into a police car. An officer shoved Angel in a car, pulled Jack from Jeremiah and Kate from Bobby, shoving the older boys in the same car as Angel; another officer put Jack and Kate in the same car. As the car sped to the station, Kate began to cry again. Jack told her repeatedly that everything would be all right, but she wasn't quite sure about that. Soon, they put the two in an interrogation room. Kate was still crying. Jack tried to get her to calm down. It was strange for him; he'd lived with only boys and Evelyn for a few years now and wasn't use to this sort of mental breakdown. An officer came in.

"Jack, Katherine, I'm Officer Martin. I'm going to ask you a few questions." The woman looked at Kate. "Honey, why are you crying?"

"She wants our brothers," Jack answered, rubbing Kate's back lightly.

"Hmm…I'll see what I can do." Officer Martin went back into the hallway and returned five minutes later with a familiar face.

"Bobby!" Kate ran towards him. Bobby picked her up as she hugged him tightly.

"What's wrong Midge?" he asked, looking at her face. "You okay? One of them hit you?"

Kate nodded. "And Jack," she added softly.

"You okay Jackie?" Jack nodded. "Katie, you're going to need to answer their questions."

"Why?"

"They're trying to figure out why we were fighting. Got it Midget?"

"Yes Bobby."

"Go ahead; ask your questions."

Officer Martin cleared her throat. "Now, can you tell us why your brothers were fighting?"

"One of the boys threatened her," Jack told her.

"Katherine, can you tell us which one?"

"The one with dark hair and blue eyes…" Kate's voice was muffled by Bobby's shoulder.

Officer Martin pulled a few pictures out. "Can you point out the boy?" Kate looked up briefly, tapped the tip of her finger on the correct picture "Thank you. Your mother is waiting for you."

Bobby ushered Jack out and followed with Kate in his arms. Evelyn waited with all of her children's things in hand, along with Jeremiah and Angel. "Angel, you take Katie, and the four of you go get in the car." All five headed for the door. "Robert, here, now." Bobby put Kate down. Jeremiah and Angel took Kate and Jack out to the car as Bobby went behind. "Bobby, I need you boys to try and set a good example for Kate for a while. She's had a rough time and needs a strong, father figure."

"I'm her brother," he pointed out.

"You're the closest thing she's ever had that hasn't abused or harmed her. Promise me that you'll try, at least for a little while…for Katie."

"Yes Ma."

That was all Kate heard before the police door shut. Angel and Jeremiah loaded Jack and Kate into their mother's car silently.

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When they got home, Evelyn sent them straight to their bedrooms. Of course, Bobby went with Kate and Jack, to make sure they were all right. Jack fell asleep within half an hour, but Kate couldn't. Bobby sat on her bed, rocking her back and forth quietly. She was beginning to get in a sleepy mood. Kate rubbed at a scar on her arm tiredly. Bobby looked at it for a moment, and at her face.

"How'd you get that one?" Bobby asked.

Kate shrugged a little, yawning. "About a year ago."

Bobby let it go for about five minutes as he thought. During one of their numerous fights last year, they'd hidden themselves under play equipment…and there was a little blonde haired, green eyed girl…about Kate's age…and she'd fallen off the equipment…maybe…it had to be. "Hey, Katie?" Bobby asked softly.

"Yeah?" she whispered to him.

"Where were you…about a year ago?"

"Another family…" she yawned, "…I ran away from them for a while…."

"To a playground?" Kate nodded, her eyes falling entirely shut. "Remember those boys you met?" She nodded again. "That was me and your brothers."

Kate looked up at him, blinking tiredly. "Really?"

Bobby laughed a little. "Yeah Kate…you get some sleep. You've had a tough day."

Kate smiled a little and let her head fall back on Bobby's shoulder. He brushed a bit of her hair off of her face, stood up with Kate in her arms, pulled the covers back, placed Kate in her bed and covered her up with the blankets. He smiled at her, kissed Kate's forehead, sat on the floor next to her bed, and fell asleep, his head falling back against her bed. A few hours, Kate was barely conscious and thinking as she stared at the ceiling. Her brothers were so brave, and then there was her. What was wrong with her? Well, one fact was that she was only seven, but then Jack was eight, so it was no excuse. However, she was a girl and they were guys. But what was that supposed to mean? She drifted back to sleep again.

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"Bobby?" Kate asked.

"Yeah Katie?" Bobby replied. Jack was on his bed, Kate on hers, Bobby on the other end of Kate's, and Angel and Jeremiah on the floor. They'd moved beyond the bullying incident from a week ago. Bobby was attempting to be a 'good role model' like Evelyn had told him to, but it was a work in process.

"Will you tell us a story?"

Bobby looked around at the boys; all of them gave him the look of approval. "All right. Y'all ain't gonna believe this shit." Everyone began to laugh at Bobby's beginning. None really cared what happened to once-upon-a-time, not even Kate.

Evelyn looked in the room as she came upstairs. "Oh, Bobby, you're not telling another story, are you?"

"I asked him to," Kate told her.

"Here, why don't you read one from a book?"

"Oh Ma…" Angel, Bobby, and Jeremiah groaned.

"Boys," Evelyn said warningly.

Bobby picked a book out of the bottom dresser drawer. He flipped it open and began to look for a story. The two hadn't mentioned to the other brothers about that she was the little runaway from the park. It hadn't seemed relevant at any of the time. Soon, she would turn eight, but Kate hadn't told anyone this either. She always celebrated quietly by herself. It was only growing another year older, what did it matter? No one had cared before and she assumed no one would care now. She was becoming slightly less girly day by day in an effort to be like her brothers. It was working fairly well. She had threatened Number 13's little brother that if he didn't leave her alone, she'd sock him one. When he started laughing at her, she stepped on his foot. After that, he hadn't said a word to her. It must have worked, she figured. It was certainly worth it though. No one dared spoke a word to her unless they wanted a fight.

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Hope you liked it! Pretty please review!


	7. Chapter 7

Kate's not your ordinary girl in anyway. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

Well, for a while, it'll probably just be little events leading up to her teen years, where I have plans galore! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: No own.**

**Good Enough**

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Kate woke up early one morning the next week excitedly. She'd never really known when her birthday was, so she simply selected a day when she was younger to celebrate her birthday. Now, it was that day: January 21st. Kate officially declared herself 8 today. That fact particularly excited her; this meant that she was Jack's age and no longer a little kid. If she was lucky, maybe she could convince them to go play some hockey. She leaped out of bed and got ready in record time before running downstairs. Bobby sat in the family room. "Whoa – Midge, what's the rush? You've got a whole hour until you get up for school," he laughed a little.

Kate went into the room. "I'm excited!"

Bobby leaned forward on the couch. "Is that so? What for?"

"It's my birthday," she said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"You're eight?" he asked incredulously. "Are you sure today's your birthday, Midget?"

Kate nodded vigorously. "Pretty sure…" It took a minute for what he'd said to register with her brain. "Wait – why do you ask?" Kate flopped down on the couch next to him.

"Well, when Angel came here, he thought that it was his birthday on one day of a year, but it wasn't." Bobby looked at her seriously.

"Really? How'd you know?"

"Ma looked it up on his birth certificate when she adopted him." He gave her a small clap on the shoulder. "How about we ask Ma?" Kate nodded again, very dismayed. It wasn't her birthday? This had been her birthday for as long as she could remember. Evelyn was already cooking, as usual when one has a brood of five, four being of the male persuasion. She smiled at her eldest and youngest.

"Good morning you two. Katie, what are you doing up this early?" Evelyn sat a towel on the counter after drying her hands thoroughly.

"Well, Kate here and I were wondering when her birthday is," Bobby said coolly, a hand on one of Kate's shoulders.

"Why do you ask?" Evelyn kneeled down to Kate's level.

"Because today's my birthday…I think…" Kate stared at the ground, moving her foot around in a circular motion.

"Honey, you're birthday is in late September," Evelyn said calmly. "September 19th." Kate's face fell entirely. She was already eight for about three months? This was no fun. "I'm sorry sweetie. I know that it's common for foster children to forget their birthdays when they aren't celebrated. I promise you, when it comes your birthday, we're going to have a double celebration for your birthday and the one before."

"Really?" Kate asked, a bit of hoping filling her voice.

"Absolutely." Evelyn ran her hair over Kate's hair. "Bobby, how about you two go and watch some television until breakfast is ready?"

"Sure thing Ma." Bobby picked Kate up and hoisted her onto his shoulders. "Come on Midget, let's see what's on television." Kate giggled a little as she would have to duck down when they came to a doorway. Bobby dropped her a short distance onto the couch. Kate laughed happily as she bounced back up from the spring of the piece of furniture. Bobby sat down next to her, flipping through the channels. Soon, Jeremiah came down.

"Bobby, what are you doing down here? Tickling Kate to death?" he asked sleepily. Kate giggled a little.

"Just go back to sleep Jerry," Bobby told him without looking up from the television. Jeremiah swore under his breath as he headed back upstairs. Eventually, Bobby settled on a program that he could stand and was appropriate for Kate.

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It was near mid-February. When Kate got up that morning, she was a little late, judging from the smell of food and the sound of male conversation wafting up the stairs. Kate wandered down, still in her pajamas, and silently slid into her seat at the table, beginning to put food on her plate. The boys were laughing at something one had said. After they stopped, Angel looked at Kate. "So Sleepyhead, who's going to be your Valentine?" he asked, taking a mouthful of cereal after.

"A what?" Kate looked at him curiously before eating a bite of bacon.

"Your Valentine," Jack confirmed, eating.

"Jackie, chew with your mouth closed," Evelyn warned him.

"In two days, there's a holiday where you give someone you like romantically a flower or candy or something…" Angel started.

"Or a card or you can ask them to be your Valentine," Jeremiah finished.

"What's a romantically?" Kate inquired curiously.

The older boys laughed. "The person you want to marry, Katie," Jeremiah told her. "Or someone you'd want to kiss, like in 'Music Man'."

"Yuck," Kate wrinkled her nose. "I don't wanna kiss anyone in my class," she added definitively.

Bobby laughed. "You sure Kate? No one you'd want to give something to or maybe sneak a little peck on the cheek?"

"Bobby Mercer," Evelyn scolded him.

Kate stuck her tongue out at the same time in disgust. "Ma, I don't think you have to worry about that," Angel pointed towards Kate, with her tongue still out.

"What are your guys' plans for Valentine's Day?" Evelyn asked the group.

"I'm going on a date with Camille," Jeremiah jumped in first.

"Sofi and I are going to watch a movie at her place," Angel supplied.

"I'm not going anywhere," Bobby replied in a bored tone.

"Who are Camille and Sofi?" Kate asked, stirring the food around on her plate a little.

"Camille is Jerry's_girlfriend_," Bobby said teasingly. "And Sofi…well, I dunno if you'd call her Angel's girlfriend…"

"Why?" she questioned.

"It's more of an on again, off again thing," Angel told her calmly.

"Yeah, more like when one of them wants it," Bobby laughed.

"All right, you all finish getting ready for school," Evelyn instructed, beginning to pick up empty plates.

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"Katie, are you ready to go?" Evelyn asked, pulling her jacket on at the bottom of the stairs. Kate came down.

"For school?" she asked, sitting on the floor and grabbing her shoes.

"You have a doctor's appointment today," Evelyn smiled at her. "There was a problem at work, so Bobby's going to have to take you after dropping off the others at school. You'll be okay with him, won't you?" Kate nodded, yanking her shoes on. "Bobby, Jeremiah, Angel, Jack, hurry up! You're going to be late!"

Bobby came in from the kitchen area and teased his mother, "Aw, Ma, I graduated a long time ago."

Evelyn gave him a small, not funny smile. "You know what I mean."

"I'm just kidding Ma," Bobby smiled mischievously as he put his shoes on. The rest of the boys came down, put their shoes on, grabbed their backpacks and all headed out to Bobby's car. First was the high school, then the primary and middle school. Bobby had Kate sit in the front seat once the car had been unloaded of the rest of their brothers. Kate wasn't exactly fond of doctors; she hadn't gone to one in years. They would always ask questions about her scars, a very delicate subject. Well, at least Bobby would be there. The waiting room was cold and the chairs were hard. She kept squirming around in the uncomfortable seat. Bobby would chuckle occasionally when he'd catch sight of her wriggling. "Midge, why don't you go play with the toys?" Bobby gestured to the pile of toys next to a few younger kids. Kate looked at him like he was crazy and shook her head vigorously.

"Katherine Mercer?" a nurse called from an arch to a doorway. The two got up and followed her. The nurse took Kate's height, weight, and blood pressure before taking her and Bobby to a room. Kate attempted to hop up on the table that was a bit taller than her, but failed. There wasn't a step stool either. Bobby laughed as she kept jumping before helping her up. Kate swung her legs back and forth as they waited. It seemed like forever before the doctor came in.

"Katherine, I'm Dr. Morgan," he shook her hand, smiling. Dr. Morgan glanced at Bobby for a moment. "Are you her father?"

Bobby let out a small laugh. "I'm her brother, Bobby."

Dr. Morgan smiled again. "I'm so sorry. So," he looked at the chart, "everything looks pretty good, but we're going to take some blood and run a few tests just to make sure…" The doctor sat the chart down on and went for a syringe. Kate's eyes went wide with panic as she looked at Bobby. He got up and went over to her.

"Hey, Midge, this is nothing," Bobby told her calmly. "Trust me, you're gonna see worse playing hockey." He held out his hand for Kate to squeeze when they drew the blood. Kate looked at it and shook her head. Bobby was a little shocked at first, but just watched. If she wanted to be tough like her brothers, this was the place to start. She was even brave enough to watch them put the needle in, take the blood, and take the needle out. "Good job Midget," Bobby congratulated her as they bandaged up the small hole.

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Please review!


	8. Chapter 8

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

So, here's a new chapter. Please enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own. Only Kate.**

**Good Enough**

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It had been a week since Bobby had taken Kate to the doctor. It was a Wednesday morning; halfway through the week, half of it left to complete. The Mercer family sat at the table for breakfast. Evelyn went to answer the phone that had rung in the kitchen. Bobby sat at on end of the table, happily munching away at his food, as were Angel and Jeremiah on their half of the table. Jack was also eating away on the opposite side of the table from the second and third oldest and on the end closest to where Evelyn would sit, opposite of Bobby. Kate sat in between Bobby and Jack, stirring her cereal around in a bowl. She didn't feel very hungry today and her nose kept running. Kate sniffled, pulling a Kleenex out of her pocket and wiping her nose. Bobby glanced at her and reacted in disgust. "Kate, what are you doing?"

Kate shoved the Kleenex in her jeans pocket and looked at him. "My nose is running."

"Nah, that's not how you do it," Bobby rolled his eyes.

"That's what sleeves are for," Jack added on, Angel laughing a little.

Jeremiah looked at his brothers. "That's disgusting, not to mention unsanitary."

Bobby and Jack laughed while Angel laughed harder. "Jer, when have _we_ cared about _sanitary_?" Bobby got in between fits of laughter.

"You, Bobby? Never. Me? Some of the time." The boys laughed harder as Jeremiah rolled his eyes and looked at Kate. "Katie, you okay?"

Kate glanced back up from her bowl of cereal and shrugged. "I don't feel good," she mumbled. Jeremiah frowned a little, getting up. He kneeled next to Kate and put the back of his hand on her forehead.

"You feel a little warm…" he commented, heading for the kitchen. "Hey, Ma?"

Evelyn hung up the phone and came to the doorway. "Yes Jeremiah?"

"Katie feels warm and says she's got a runny nose," Jeremiah told her.

"She just slept with the covers over her head and has allergies," Bobby said nonchalantly.

"I'm right here," Kate muttered as the boys debated what was wrong with her. Evelyn let the boys fight it out as she came over and checked Kate out. She went and grabbed a thermometer from the bathroom upstairs and came back.

"Just keep this under your tongue until it beeps," Evelyn smiled at her as she began to clear the dishes from the table. Kate began to squirm in her chair as she waited for the thing sticking out of her mouth to make a noise. It seemed like it would take forever. She frowned. Finally, a few little beeps went off. Before Kate could take it out, Angel had sat down where Jack had been, took it out, and read it. Now, he frowned and went to show Evelyn. The two came back.

"All right kids, let's go!" Bobby shouted from the door.

"You go ahead and go Angel," Evelyn told the third oldest. "Katie's going to stay home today." She lightly brushed Kate's hair down as she went back to the kitchen. Kate slumped in her seat, pulling her legs up. The house went silent as the boys left. Kate climbed down from her chair and went into the kitchen, yanking out a chair at the breakfast nook. It hadn't been this quiet since Kate's first day in the Mercer household…until the boys got home. Evelyn turned around, the last of the dishes clean and smiled at Kate. "How are you feeling, sweetie?" She shrugged in response. "Why don't you go watch some television or up to your room? You're going to need some rest." Kate hopped off the chair and headed back to bed. She was tired anyway. Yanking her pajamas back on, she crawled back into bed and fell asleep right away. By the time she woke up, Bobby was sitting on the floor, asleep against the side of Jack's bed. Kate looked at him curiously and slowly crawled out of her bed. She snuck over towards her sleeping brother and lightly poked his shoulder. He snored a little. Kate poked his shoulder a bit harder again. Bobby woke with a start.

"What the…Midget, what are you doing up?" Bobby rubbed his eyes.

"I woke up," she whispered, tracing her finger on the carpet on the floor.

"Well, how about we go watch some T.V.?" Kate nodded vigorously. Bobby picked her up, putting her on his shoulders, and heading downstairs. He put her down and they sat on the couch. As much as he didn't want to, Bobby put in Kate's movie, "The Music Man". Within the first half hour, she was asleep. What seemed to be very soon after, Kate heard whispers. She woke up again, curled up on the couch. Bobby was no longer on the couch. The television blabbered on about something she didn't care about. Angel, Jeremiah, Bobby, and Evelyn were in the kitchen, she figured, and those would be the whispers she heard. As she glanced around the room, Jack was sitting on a chair, vaguely paying attention to the show. Kate moved around a little.

"You don't have to move," Jack told her, coming closer. "Are you feeling okay?" He kneeled in front of the couch. Kate shifted a little and then groaned. She didn't want to move. "Do you wanna start your movie again?"

"I thought Bobby already watched it…" Kate mumbled.

Jack laughed. "Nah – he turned it off when he knew you were asleep…at least he said so." He went and hit the play button on the VCR before settling in on a part of the couch Kate wasn't on. Unlike Bobby, Jack could actually stand the movie. The two sat in silence as they watched it. Things were fairly quiet, even though two-thirds of the family was in the unofficial meeting in the kitchen. Occasionally, one of them would pick up a snippet of what they were discussing.

"Ma, what's this mean?" Angel asked one time that Jack heard.

"What can _we_ do?" Jeremiah inquired about five minutes later.

"We didn't do this, right Ma?" Bobby questioned much later.

"Does she know yet?" Angel said softly after a while.

"No, she doesn't, Angel," Evelyn replied calmly.

"Are we going to?" Bobby jumped in. There was silence again for a while. Both of them were slightly involved in the conversation, but didn't read too much into it. The music filled the room again for over an hour. Then, the four congregated into the room. Evelyn sat down on the opposite end of Kate. Bobby stood up, leaning against the doorframe. Jeremiah and Angel took the two open chairs in the room.

"Jack, Kate, there's something that we need to talk about…as a family," Evelyn's voice was even. It didn't sound the way it normally did. It wasn't very friendly, but it was attempting to stay calm. Kate sat up a little, slowly, and looked at her. "When the doctor took some of your blood when you went for your check up, he did some tests on it." Evelyn took a breath. It was then that Kate realized all of the boys except Jack refused to look her in the eyes. "What he found is that…" Evelyn took one of Kate's hands, "…you have cancer." She looked at her adoptive mother curiously, as if to ask what that meant. "It means that you're sick and are going to need treatments to get better…you can't go to school anymore…" Kate's face fell into sadness and even more confusion. "You're going to get sick really easy and you're going to have to be careful." Kate looked down at the couch. She was sick…with something called cancer. But she'd only felt bad this morning; she was fine. Evelyn hugged Kate tight. "We're going to do everything we can to get you better, Katie." When Evelyn let go, Jeremiah came over and swept her into another hug.

"It's going to be okay, Kate. We'll be there for you," he told her, rubbing her back a little before letting go.

Angel and Bobby also hugged her with comforting words. Kate still didn't understand entirely what was going on. She went up to her room before dinner; food still wasn't appetizing. She sat there for a while, thinking, even though her book was open. Soon, Jack came in to go to sleep with Evelyn behind to tuck the youngest two in for the night. Evelyn got Kate settled in first, gave her a kiss goodnight, and smiled. "Goodnight Katie."

As she went to go tuck Jack in, Kate spoke softly, "Good night Ma." At first, Evelyn was a little stunned, but then thrilled. Kate had finally called her a variation of mom. Evelyn tucked Jack in and shut the door behind her.

He looked at Kate. "Are you all right?" he crawled out of his bed and sat on the edge of Kate's bed.

"I don't understand," she said, frustrated. "All I get is that I'm sick…" Kate frowned at the blanket.

Jack crawled in behind her, next to the wall. "Don't worry. Bobby, Jerry, and Angel mean it when they say that their going to do something." Jack hugged Kate from behind. "Goodnight Katie."

"Goodnight Jack."

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Well, now we've got a plot introduced to keep us entertained for a while. Please review! Hope you enjoyed!


	9. Chapter 9

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

Just got back from vacation. Produced this while in the car. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: Only own Kate, her teddy bear, and the new character introduced in this chapter.**

**Good Enough**

It had been a week since Kate had last gone to school and it was killing her. She didn't want to be held back a year and was assured that she wouldn't be. Apparently, she was a very good reader and scientist. The teachers claimed that she wouldn't miss too much valuable math, but should continue reading to keep her vocabulary up. Normally, students would be thrilled to not go to school, but after a few days of nothing with Bobby, you'd rather be in school. However, after she told Bobby she was bored with sitting around, he took her out and began to fine tune her hockey skills. Evelyn was taking precautions to ensure that Kate didn't get sick. Every time the boys came home from school, they had to wash their hands before coming near Kate. While she didn't tell Evelyn, she thought this whole thing sucked. She hadn't been treated yet and wasn't looking forward to how sick that'd make her. They'd all gone to the cancer doctor (Kate didn't like pronouncing the technical name) after school one day to discuss her first round of treatment. From the way he'd described it, Kate figured she'd rather be sick than endure what'd happen after treatment. Tomorrow would be her first treatment. Evelyn was pulling all the boys out to be there. Kate had insisted that they didn't need to, but the rest of the family thought it was completely necessary. They all wanted to be there in case she needed any of them. Strangely enough, she wasn't scared at all; she was more afraid of after when she'd be suffering side effects. Evelyn and her brothers had insisted upon watching _Music Man_…yet again. They thought Kate needed to be calmed down and relaxed even though she already was. She didn't mind watching the movie again though. It was her favorite at the moment. When it was over, everyone went to bed. Jack looked at Kate as she settled in with her book and teddy. "Katie…are you scared?" he asked quietly.

"Not really," she looked at Jack. "I just don't want after to come. I don't wanna be _that_ sick."

"I'm…afraid," Jack admitted to Kate. "I don't want anything to happen to you. You're my only sister and I don't wanna just have brothers again."

Kate crawled out of her bed and into Jack's, giving him a hug. "Can you bring your guitar and play for me when it's over?"

Jack smiled. "Of course I can Katie. Do you want me to bring you anything else?"

"No. Just your guitar."

"Tell me if you think of anything else. Goodnight Katie."

"Goodnight Jack." Both of them lay awake for a while. Jack was trying not to think about what was going to happen, but it wasn't working. Kate was just beginning to think about all the things that could go wrong and it terrified her a little. There were so many opportunities for her to die tomorrow. She'd have to bring her book and her teddy to keep her mind off of it. Eventually, each one fell into a restless sleep. When the morning came, Kate didn't eat breakfast, not just to throw it up later. She packed her pajama pants, one of her new shirts, a new jacket, a book and her teddy bear. They all loaded up into Evelyn's car and headed for the hospital. Kate held her teddy bear tightly, trying not to get too freaked out. When they got there, Evelyn had to fill out loads of paper work. All of the boys tried to distract her from the long wait. Kate read her book quietly until they took her to get her IV. They all waited for her to freak out when the needle was brought out, and all but Bobby were shocked when she didn't even bat an eye at it. Finally, it was time to go in.

"I love you Katherine," Evelyn smiled at her before kissing her forehead.

"See you when you come out Midget," Bobby gave her a peck on the cheek.

"We'll be right here when you wake up," Angel told her and also kissed her forehead.

"Be good Katie," Jeremiah kissed her forehead too.

"Love you Katie. See you when you wake up," Jack kissed her cheek and gave her a hug.

"All right, let's get this done," the nurse smiled at her. Kate had found it sort of strange that she had a male nurse, but certainly liked the attention and the feeling that it was one of her brothers there. He wheeled her away and her family disappeared behind doors. "Are you scared, Katie?" he asked her calmly.

Kate held her teddy bear close. "A little…what's your name?"

He laughed a little. "A little scared. You're doing better than most first timers. My name is Derek."

"Okay," she whispered. "Derek, you'll still be here, right?"

"Don't worry, I'll be there Katie. In fact, I can even check up on you at home if you like." Derek smiled at her again. He had brown hair that was sort of long and blue eyes.

"Really? You can?" Kate asked, brightening up a little.

"Absolutely – free house check ups. We'll also see if I can't find you some medicine for that sickness you'll get after." They were at the room where she'd have her treatment. "All right, we're going to give you the sleeping medicine now."

"Anesthesia," she whispered.

Derek laughed a little, pressing the end of the syringe as it went through the IV. "That's absolutely right, Katie. Now, it's gonna sting a little, but you'll be asleep in no time."

"What's going to happen to my teddy?" she asked, trying not to itch her arm where the anesthesia went in.

"I'll take good care of him for you. Does he have a name?"

"A name?"

"Your teddy has to have a name. I remember when I was little, I had a teddy bear named Jack."

Kate giggled a little. "That's my brother's name…can I name my teddy Derek? So I won't forget you?"

Derek laughed. "You can name your teddy whatever you want. And it's wonderful to meet you, Derek. I'm Derek." Kate giggled again as he shook the bear's paw. "I'll be right there when you wake up. Goodnight Katie."

"Goodnight Derek," she yawned before everything went black.

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When Kate woke up, the lights were too bright. She tried to hide under the covers. Someone laughed. Kate peered out. "Derek?"

"I'm right here Katie," he told her. "And I have Derek the teddy with me too. Strange thing – they wouldn't let me give him right back after you got out, so I just had to sit here and wait for you to wake up." Derek got up and came towards her, holding out her teddy. Kate took it gratefully and hugged it tightly. "How are you feeling Katie? Do you want any food?"

"The lights are too bright…and I don't feel hungry right now," she mumbled.

Derek gave her another smile. "Okay then, no food. However, you do have one person who really wants to see you." He glanced at the door and made a motion for someone to come in. Jack came in, playing his guitar. Kate smiled a little as Jack finished the song and gave Kate a small hug, being very careful.

"Can Katie come home yet?" Jack looked at Derek hopefully.

"We'll have to wait a bit longer and see how she feels." Jack sighed and sat in one of the chairs. Kate sighed and glanced up at the television. It was playing some show she'd never seen before and really didn't care about. "Well, I have to go back to work for now, but I'll come by soon and check in on you at home Katie." Derek smiled at her and left. Kate decided she liked Derek's smile. It was very warm and sweet. Jack and Kate sat there silently, staring at the near muted television. Soon, Evelyn and the rest of the boys came in, all saying hello and trying to make her laugh or feel happy. When the nurse said that she could go home, Evelyn shooed the boys out of the room to help her get in her clothes. Kate felt like she couldn't stand up straight or walk straight, like she was going to fall down all the time. Rather than walk out of the hospital, Bobby carried her out to the car.

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It had been a little over a week since Kate's first treatment and she was still feeling the effects. If she was having a good moment and ate, it would come back up later that day. The boys had to be even more careful now since she was more susceptible to disease. The movies they had were boring and television wasn't any better. Kate had concluded that soap operas were the stupidest thing on the planet. She'd read so many books that even books were boring. She was miserable, and yet she sat, watching her movie, curled up in a ball. The doorbell rang and Bobby went to answer it. "Midget, you've got a visitor!" he called before coming in. She looked at the doorway and jumped up, giving the person a hug around the legs.

"Derek!" she cried.

"Hey Katie," he smiled at her. Bobby went to the kitchen. He rarely went for food when it was just him and Kate so he wouldn't make her feel bad and his took this opportunity for all it was worth. Derek picked up Kate and sat her on the couch. "How are you?" She frowned. "Ah, I see we've made it to that stage. Well, let's see if anything in my bag of tricks can help…" Derek lifted up a backpack onto the coffee table and began to dig around. "First, we have some medication for your stomach," he showed her some pills, "…some apple juice," a bottle of juice, "….and there's," he held up a movie case, " 'The Sound of Music' for our afternoon entertainment…"

"Afternoon entertainment?" Kate asked curiously.

"I figured that you'd like some company for the afternoon, unless you want me to leave…" Derek answer her.

"No!"

Derek laughed. "Your brothers told me you liked 'The Music Man', so I figured that this might be a good shot for a movie." He sat the movie on the coffee table with the rest of everything. "And, last but not least…" he produced a flower out of the bag, "…a flower for the girl." Kate giggled a little as he let her smell it. "Now, I shall get us some glasses and a vase for your flower and we'll watch the movie." Derek went ahead and headed towards where Bobby had gone. Soon, he reappeared with the flower in water and some glasses. He put the movie in and sat on the couch with Kate. She really enjoyed this and liked being around Derek. Part way through, Kate yawned a little. Derek leaned over. "If you're sleepy, go right ahead. I'll be here when you wake up."

"But the movie…" she whispered.

"Don't worry. I'm leaving it here for you. It's yours to keep."

"Thank you," Kate leaned over to the side of the couch and put her head on it. Within moments, she was asleep to the _Sound of Music_.

So, hope you enjoyed! Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way

Kate's not your ordinary girl in any way. Well, the Mercers were never ordinary either.

_So, here's another new chapter. Sorry, it's sort of fluff for a while until we get to some real stuff…or I might pull a little time warp on you guys. Oh well. Now, it's time to address a little issue. While I may also write __House, M.D.__ stories, I'm no doctor. So, there will be some discrepancies medical wise. Some times, it's more key to the plot line if it isn't correct. (Movies tend to do that too) So, I know that some things are wrong, but I have a general idea, so please don't get angry with me. Now that we've addressed that, enjoy!_

**DISCLAIMER: No own.**

**Good Enough**

Kate wasn't nervous at all for her second round of treatment. This time, she just had to get a catheter put in and then her treatment could go straight through there. No more poking with needles. Of course, this would only brand her as a cancer patient, but Kate liked to idea of no more needles. She didn't even bring Derek the teddy bear or a book with her this time. Bobby, Jeremiah, and Angel had tried to convince her to bring something, anything along, but it hadn't worked. That was one thing that made her like her brothers was how stubborn she was becoming. Kate sat in a chair, almost bouncing up and down. Jack was pretty okay with this now. After all, Kate had made it through the first time alive (okay wasn't the right term), and now Jack knew that it'd be all right. Kate was also working on pronouncing her least favorite cancer related words. Finally, Derek came out. "Hey Katie," he smiled at her. "You ready to go?"

"Yes!" Kate jumped up from her chair. Derek laughed a little as Bobby rolled his eyes. Kate followed Derek to the room where they'd give her treatment from now on. "I've been working on my cancer words," she told him proudly.

"Oh, you have? Let's hear them."

"Oncologist," she recited. He smiled and nodded at her, urging her on. "Chemotherapy…catheter…intracavitary…intravenous…and acute myeloid leukemia."

"Good job Katie. You've been working hard since we last talked, haven't you?" Derek opened the door to the room and let Kate in.

Kate beamed. "I have been!" she said as Derek helped her up on the table. "And I don't care anymore about how sick I get after!"

Derek gave her another smile. "Well, we'll see how you feel later." He pulled up a chair and sat in front of her. "What they're going to do today is put a tube in right about here," he gestured to the area under his collarbone on his right side, "and then they can just put the syringe in there and no more poking with needles for now." Kate smiled even wider. Derek smiled back at her.

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No matter how good Kate had felt before, she certainly felt like crap right now. She hadn't left her room since coming home, except for when she needed to run to the bathroom. Most of her time had been spent sleeping in her warm bed with her teddy bear. What little time was spent awake, Kate spent thinking. She thought about her family life that she'd quite settled into. She also thought about Derek and what her brothers had told her about Valentine's Day and the romantically. At times, Kate thought that maybe she and Derek would be like Marian the Librarian and Harold Hill. At other times, she thought that they would just be great friends and spend a lot of time together. Maybe even best friends! Kate had never had a best friend before.

Kate was completely absorbed in her book right now. It was rather fascinating to her and took her far out of her own misfortunes and woes. When she wasn't thinking, but was awake, her time was spent in other worlds and times far from her own. A knock came at the door. "Come in," she said softly, tearing her eyes away from the page long enough to see who it was. "Hi Derek."

"What are you reading, Katie?" he came closer, taking a peek at the cover.

She held up the book a bit more so he could see. "The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe," she murmured, turning a page. Derek kneeled down in front of her.

"How are you feeling?" Kate put a bookmark in the book and sat it on the bed, staring straight at Derek. He nodded a little. "You need anything?"

"Just a friend," she murmured.

Derek gave her a small smile. "I think I can do that."

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The days turned into weeks, and the weeks turned into months. Treatments and its after effects blurred together for Kate. Each brother remembered a specific time differently for different reasons. At the time, each one seemed to pass painfully slow. March had turned into April, April brought in May, May faded into June, and so on and so forth. Each month passed by without thought to it until it was September.

Kate still wasn't allowed to go back to school. Her immune system was too weak. She was upset and slightly disgruntled about that fact. They had sent home some work for her to do for the rest of the year to keep her up to speed on her subjects. Kate was becoming a bit more like her brothers each day, hence that she was so disgruntled about her inability to go back to school. Books had partly become her pastime. She'd progressed beyond C.S. Lewis to J.R.R. Tolkien and farther. Derek attempted to spend as much time with her as he could, making sure she'd be all right. Evelyn still worked in the foster care system. Angel and Jack still attended school. Jeremiah was going to community college. Bobby was still hanging around the house. Thus, Derek and Bobby kept watch over Kate.

Kate didn't bother dragging herself out of bed early on this particular day. She spent most of the day reading a book. She didn't feel like facing Bobby and Derek, if he was there. About three, she finally got up and went downstairs for a small amount of food. The sight in the kitchen shocked her at first. The small kitchen table was pulled out into the middle of the room with one chair in front of it. Evelyn, Bobby, Jeremiah, Angel, Jack, and Derek were all gathered around the three sides without chairs. On the table was a cake with lit candles. "Happy Birthday Kate!" the group cheered as she stopped in the doorway.

Kate's jaw dropped. She didn't utter a word. Evelyn came forward and kneeled down in front of Kate. "Today's your birthday, Katie. September 19th."

"Oh," she murmured, glancing at the sight again. All of the boys were smiling at her as Evelyn hugged her. The rest of them came closer. First, Bobby hugged her, then Jeremiah, Angel, and Jack.

Derek was last. "Happy Birthday Katie," he told her.

"Thanks," Kate said softly. Bobby had begun to cut the cake and put it on plates, one being a little piece for Kate. Everyone went to the dining room table to eat their cake as Kate's brothers pulled out a few gifts and sat them in front of her. She wasn't sure what to think about this whole thing. After all, she hadn't been celebrating her birthday on the right day anyway. Now, Kate was 9. It was rather surreal. She had almost lived with the Mercers for a full year now.

Things were still about the same when November came around. Thanksgiving wasn't as enjoyable for Kate this year, but she still sat at the table, nibbling a little. Evelyn, Bobby, Jeremiah, Angel, and Jack all sat in their seats. An extra chair had been pulled up next to Kate's for Derek. Evelyn had invited him over since he had the day off and was far away from his family, alone. Kate was slightly envious of her brothers now.

She glanced around at their plates, not listening to their conversation. All of her brothers had turkey, green bean casserole, cheesy potato casserole, bread, everything on their plate. Hers had a small piece of bread and small portions of turkey and green bean casserole. She took her time eating it so it felt like she had as much food as them. If Kate had loaded up on the food like her brothers, she would have only thrown it back up later.

When Evelyn stood up to put everything away, Kate jumped up and followed to help. Evelyn smiled at Kate. "Honey, are you sure you don't want to go relax with the boys?" she asked, putting some food in a container.

"The sight of the food makes me sick, so I'm going to help put it away," the eight-year-old announced freely. Evelyn laughed a little, handing a container to Kate to put away. The boys retired to the living room, watching a hockey game. Sometimes, loud shouts or expletives could be heard. Now, Kate just rolled her eyes at it. The expletives never bothered her anymore. After all of the food had been placed in containers, Evelyn and Kate went into the living room. Evelyn sat in her usual chair, pulling out the knitting needles. Bobby had Kate sit on his lap. Of course, she was only closer to the loudest swearing. Within moments, she was out like a light bulb. That was a habit from the treatment. Kate started sleeping more and more often. Her brothers, mother, and Derek were all used to it now.

_Hope you enjoyed the new chapter. Please review!_


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